Game of Life
by Necrolily
Summary: Another filler. -Playing a game of chess is always more fun when lives are put on the line. When a pawn winds you making the wrong move it's anyone's guess weather it means removal from the game or if a better out look can be gained from it all.


Alright more crap. This time fiddling with first person perspective. Yes it's a self insert in a story Ever and I have running in the new TF: Prime universe but I couldn't help myself and I figured I might as well have some filler since this account and all my other stories are so dearly neglected.

I don't own TF. Trust me you prolly wouldn't like it if I did.

* * *

><p>Oh the price we pay for our games.<p>

Draw the wrong card and your sent back to start. Roll a bad number and you loose a turn.

Pay another for buying you out of your streets.

Let a little blood spill from a bad turn.

For others the price is more severe.

When you flirt with shadows you better keep your game up at all times.

There can't be a stumble.

There can't be bad roll or a crappy draw.

You HAVE to keep your space and you can't let yourself catch a fowl step and slip up.

Because if you do the pay is far greater then a skinned knee and a draw back on the board.

Though when you're playing the game you focus on the immediate players. The little chess pieces that walk and talk and so on.

You forget about the silent pawns. The still. The inanimate.

The items along the way that are essential to the game.

The was my mistake.

I had come so far and covered my grounds best I could. I had clawed myself a nice little niche alongside the leader over a damned army.

I understood shadows.. so I thought.

I understand darkness to a point that it's players were one in the same with me.I was at home.

I was at home enough for the leader not to care if his little pet accompanied him into his quarters while he skimmed. He was secure enough with me, satisfied in his 'astounding' judgment and abilities that he figured I wouldn't harm a thing as he left me alone to tend to his duties for a bit. True I had not intended to hurt anything. My nature secured that.

What tripped me though.. was infatuation.

Infatuation with lovely objects.

It was a chunk of crystal that could have formed the pillar of smaller building awning. A small oblisque. All composed of a single crystal that looked as if it could be amethyst and pink sapphire in one. It seemed to pulse with it's own energy, perched upon it's little pedestal.

Bottom lit. That had to be the reason. What an effect it produced!

If anyone else had been looking at it I'm sure they would have touched it too.

Or maybe they would have been smart enough to keep their hands away from the bloody thing.

For that one moment I let the stupidity of idealism take me and stepped up upon the pedestal and let my hand run about the surface of the object. It was warm, and rougher then it let on in patches. It was nothing but tiny barb like splinters in certain places!

I was careful though. A light touch, a skim of the palm. When a little barb caught me, and splintered here and there and I worked it out and moved on. But I had become to enveloped. I don't know how long I spent admiring and inspecting but it must have been enough for the mech I was working my words through to finish what he had to and return.

I jolted away from the crystal and slid away, the skin of my arm prickling and making me wince as I did.

Standing upon the table to which I was supposed to I inspected the burning spot with disdain. I had caught a splinter. It was in at an odd angle and from what I saw it was tiny. Great now I would have to wind up picking that out later. ..Much later though.

The wound wasn't really bleeding and the leader had returned.

I needed to act.

* * *

><p>Maybe those drama classes way back when did something good, or maybe that seeker was just pompous enough to make it easy.., because I was secure and safe within the Autobot base once more.<p>

It was good to relax again with mechs that weren't about to flatten me or slit my throat.

But that happiness wasn't something I was reveling in.

I was more caught up in misery.

Now I'm not to get sick to easily since before when I was little. The occasional pain of growth here and there or a belly cramp was something I dealt with normally.

I hadn't thrown up or dealt with huge stomach pains or agonizing aches or some fevers for years now. Until this point.

I felt like I was going to die. Pit I was wishing for death by that point.

Most people complain their insides are on fire when their sick?

My were stuck in slow rotisary blades and slowly pulling and expanding themselves.

It hurt.

Everything hurt!

My limbs were sore and stinging like I was reacting to damned allergies but the flesh was smooth and pale as ever. If not paler. I was shivering and huddled over in the back of the base, having found the most unused hallway there was to sit and curl in upon myself.

I felt like slag.

My limbs were tearing at the sockets and filled with needles down their lengths. My throat might as well have been swelling or constricted with a to tight collar. I could breath just fine but it kept compressing on my throat and causing me to choke.

My stomach was rolling, my lungs clamping. I couldn't move without being sent into a crying fit on my side and just praying it would all end then and there.

I was hoping that if I could just pass out and sleep it off things would be fine. That's what I had done as a child. Just sleep it off.

That plan was decimated though when my stomach gave a violent heave that barely gave me time enough to flip up onto my hands and knees before I vomited everything out. It shouldn't have been much.

Just some water and fruit.

What came up wasn't either.

Swirling in a puddle on the floor... was a strange liquid.

True it wasn't much but in that little puddle was a substance that seemed to give off it's own light and swirled in a sickening manner. It shone almost like car oil and ran like watered down coolant.

And gave off a glow and color just like the crystal I had so admired back upon the Decepticon den.

The same color of the splinter I had forgotten to remove when I got home.

"Oh god.."

It was time to see the medic.

I shivered and crept into the room, glad the others were occupied with games and each other to not notice me slip about and climb the stairs to be nearer the ever working medical officer.

Vomiting seemed to have helped calm things down but I was still stinging and cold. The collar still to tight about my throat.

"Ratchet..." I hated how my voice rang in my ears through megaphones but I knew I was barely whispering. Clearing my throat I called him again until I gained his attention.

I wanted to just slink away but events wouldn't allow that now.

Go back to shuddering sobbing fits or deal with the doctor.

"Can you tell me.. if your race has any material that's... crystalline in substance and sorta purple.. and pink.. and glows?"

The question was met with a snort and look of suspicious annoyance that she'd always associate with the medic.

"And just why would I go into the task of answering such a vague question for no reason."

I couldn't even growl. I just sighed and slumped, whining softly. It was more of pain then for pity and I felt lower for letting it sound.

"Ratchet please just answer...It's yes .. or no."

That seemed to set the medic off on alert. Suspicious of the prodding.

"First tell why.."

"Ratchet damnit please!" I could feel the corners of my eyes sting and the image of the world grew wavy. Primus I was acting like some silly school girl. I could just hear the tone that registered 'tears immenant' and hated it. I was tired of this. "It hurts! Alright I got stuck with something back in Starscream's quarters and now I'm shaking and sore and my insides hurt and I just threw up some gunk that no human should throw up so please answer the god damn question!" My legs decided to quit and I had to sit, instantly balling up on myself once more and shuddering and whining.

That left the room silent and I figured the outburst had drawn at least a few more eyes or optics to me.

Atleast Ratchet was taking this seriously.

"Describe it again."

"Crystal, a shard larger then your hand... uhm... purple and pink with a weird bioluminecsence. It felt warm and sorta.. it was almost alive.. "

He drew back and tapping his digits in consideration. "It sounds like... no it couldn't be. That large deposit alone should have been it.."

"Ratchet what?"

"Don't hold out..."

"It..." His optics turned critical as he examined me. "Let me see were you say it stuck you?"

I sighed and removed my jacket, offering the left arm, belly up, for the medic. "Near the wrist.."

It took him only a moment to scan. And then scan.. and scan again before he recoiled sharply with a look of horror.

"How long have you had that in you?"

That tone wasn't anything I liked. "Uhmm.. for a few days. What is it?"

The question and slew of worried looks echoed about the room.

His look turned grave as he spoke.

"Dark energon..."

A gasp. A cry of outrage. Mutters of confusion.

"What is that...?"

"Dark energon is a corrupt substance. It has the power to turn a Cybertronian into a monster of a fighting machine. It's a narcotic to the living, a drug to make them stronger, faster and more blood thirsty than before... and a reanimate for the dead..."

Oh.

"So that's what's making me sick... can't we.. just remove it now?" It was .. just a small splinter..right?

One of his digits slid beneath my arm and once more he scanned, though this was longer, more attentive. deeper. When it was finished he stood straight and tall and gave a suffering sigh.

"Believe me... it would be the first thing I would do. But... the.. splinter.. you have logged in your arm is a decent sized sliver and it seems to be melding with your biology."

Wait...

"So... Your saying this thing has ... attached itself to my muscles... or.. it's gone to a cellular level..?"

"As far as I can see.. yes it's merging itself your your microbiological makeup. I can't know to what extent it has bonded but from the symptoms you've described it must be well under ways of the process."

It was solemn. As if I was dying. I wonder if I was. If I would. But if a substance is deadly then often times it kills within the minute or it took large doses to do it. I was still breathing and it was just a sliver. Maybe it just killed over time.

Maybe it wasn't killing me at all...

Ratchet was speaking again and I hurriedly tuned back in. It was procedures that would be needed, steps to be taken.

Medical emergency things.

I tuned out again and wrapped my arms about my legs, glancing down at the wounded limb from time to time.

If it wasn't killing me...than..

In nature organisms came together all the time. Symbiosis. There were all kinds of it in the living world..

I looked at the spot were the sliver embedded itself.

It was just a matter of determining weather this was going to leave me unaffected in the long run... harm me beyond measure..or..benfit in some way.

I prayed my luck would turn out for the last one because right now the first wasn't really an option and the second I didn't want to think about.

Just wait and watch and see where it goes, because there was always a way to get out of checkmate. And I think I had enough sense and help to turn it in my favor.


End file.
